


Alles Nahe werde fern (Everything Near Becomes Far)

by tmelange



Series: Dämmerung senke sich von oben (Twilight down from Heaven) [1]
Category: Weiß Kreuz
Genre: AU, Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2002-08-01
Updated: 2002-08-01
Packaged: 2017-10-20 21:28:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,651
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/217269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tmelange/pseuds/tmelange
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Love between assassins is an incautious and tenuous thing, especially when it becomes a weapon in the arsenal of a German telepath.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Alles Nahe werde fern (Everything Near Becomes Far)

**Author's Note:**

> Originally written in August 2002, updated November 2005.
> 
> In the Weiss Kreuz timeline, this story takes place after _An Assassin and White Shaman_ 1  & 2 but before the anime.
> 
> This work is intended as part of a series but it can easily stand alone. In fact, although it falls time-wise in the middle of the series, it was the first story written. I would suggest it be read first. However, here is the series in chronological order:
> 
> Series: Dämmerung senke sich von oben (Twilight down from Heaven)
> 
> Part One: Dämmerung senke sich von oben (Twilight down from Heaven)  
> Part Two: Der Zauberlehrling (The Sorcerer's Apprentice)  
> Part Three: Alles Nahe werde fern (Everything Near Becomes Far)  
> Part Four: Nachtgesang (Night Song)  
> Part Five: Kennst du mich nicht? (Do you not know me?)  
> Part Six: Gesang der Geister über den Wassern (Song of Spirits over the Waters)

Ran Fujimiya sat pensively at a small table in a sushi bar on the beach in Kujukurihama, about a five-minute walk from the small hotel where he would be staying with Yohji. Ran sighed softly, picking at the sticky label on his bottle of Asahi. Yohji Kudoh—his newly-acquired teammate, the blonde, green-eyed assassin who had him doing things, wild, crazy things, he would never have thought of doing just three months ago.

Aya. He had to remember he was Aya now—not Ran. He had to stop thinking of himself as Ran, except when—

 _"Aya."_

 _"Don't call me that. Not here."_

 _"What should I call you then?"_

 _"Ran. You should call me Ran."_

 _"I love the way your skin tastes, Ran."_

 _"Hmm."_

 _"And the way you murmur."_

 _"Yohji."_

 _"And the way you say my name."_

 _"Shut up."_

His lips tightened into a hard line as he stared at his fingers and the label he was quickly turning into confetti. Every erotic memory, every hot, quick flash, served as an indictment, a reminder of how the two of them just couldn't keep their hands off one another right from that first moment—when he had woken up in Yohji's bed with the most beautiful eyes he had ever seen studying him with concern. The whole situation with Yohji was scandalous. Disgusting. Ran had other, more important things to concentrate on—like his sister, like his revenge on Takatori and the red-haired demon who had laughed at him as he watched his parents and his family's company explode into debris. Yet, he allowed himself to be swept away by a madly rushing river of temptation. He had absolutely no control; he was never able to resist.

Closing his eyes briefly, Ran nibbled on his lower lip. _Yohji is like a drug that dulls the pain,_ he admitted. Their . . . association . . . was exhilarating, like being poised on the edge of a knife. Insidiously, it had become the only thing in his life that made him feel alive.

Ran looked up briefly, disapprovingly, as the pale brunette sitting at the adjacent table jostled her chair and bumped into him.

"Sorry."

Not bothering to answer, Ran turned his back, moving his chair as far away from her as was possible in the cramped space between tables. He hated places like this, the people and the noise, the acrid cloud of cigarette smoke that polluted the breathable air, and, especially, the dark corners where any outrageous thing might happen at any moment. Ran would never even _think_ of spending his time sitting in a crowded bar, on a beach, in the middle of nowhere.

But Yohji liked this place.

And it was a small price to pay, he had to admit, to be allowed three nights and two days to bask in Yohji's honey-colored optimism without the intrusions of Ken and Omi and the tedium that was the flower shop routine. Sitting in this bar was a mere trifle if it allowed him a small bit of sunshine when everything else around him was so black—as black as the volcanic sand on the beach right outside the doors.

He raised his hand, snagging the attention of the young girl serving as waitress. He pointed at his empty beer bottle, indicating he'd like another. Carefully, he placed the correct amount of money on the table. When she came by with her tray and his order, it took only a moment to exchange the money for the fresh drink.

Ran glanced at his watch. Yohji was late, as usual. He tapped his fingers impatiently on the table, knowing he'd have to wait exactly thirty-five minutes after their nine o'clock meeting time for Yohji to make an appearance. If he were to be truthful about it, however, it wasn't really Yohji's fault he was stuck waiting since his teammate was a creature of habit and Ran could have compensated easily—by leaving the flower shop later, for instance, so he'd arrive at the bar at ten o'clock instead of nine—but he had tried that once before and it had ruined their entire weekend. The real reason he always arrived first had nothing to do with Yohji's habitual tardiness. Ran simply hated to walk into their special place to find Yohji already surrounded by a gaggle of girls, fawning all over him, touching him. It was better to be here waiting.

Someone, pushing their way through the crowd, bumped into his table, disrupting his drink. Ran caught the bottle before it could topple over and spill its contents. Irritably, he glared at the culprit—and found himself staring up into the apologetic face of Schuldig.

Ran recognized him immediately and felt his mouth drop open in astonishment, unable to believe his eyes. It had been a couple of years but there was no doubt it was Schuldig, the one person in the entire world he'd hoped never to have to see again after that one summer he spent working at his father's company. The tall German still had his shock of red hair, his piercing green eyes, and that inimitable style that had him looking as handsome and distinctive as Yohji in a gray double-breasted Armani overcoat with a pair of sunglasses perched smartly on the top of his head.

"Ran!" Schuldig said. "Ran Fujimiya!"

Ran tried hard not to groan.

"I can't believe it! I haven't seen you in ages! How've you been?"

Ran blinked at Schuldig's earnest demeanor, trying to stop himself from getting up and walking out, waiting for Yohji in the parking lot. It wasn't as if the two of them had ever been _friends._

"Fine," he answered shortly.

"How's your father?" Schuldig pulled a chair over and sat down on it backwards, setting his beer on the table.

Ran scowled. It wasn't as if he could ignore the obnoxious German now that the man had taken it upon himself to sit at his table. "He's fine," he mumbled. "What are you doing here?"

"Surprised that I'm still in Japan?" Schuldig shrugged. "I like it here. I went back to Germany right after my internship was over but I found I missed this place. My time at Fujimiya looked really good on my resume, and your father gave me a personal recommendation." He smirked. "I had a ton of offers."

Bitterly, Ran figured his father _would_ have given Schuldig a glowing recommendation. After all, the German was one of his father's favorite interns; Schuldig could do no wrong. In fact, his father had made it a point to praise Schuldig at his own expense whenever possible.

 _Ran, you should be more like Schuldig._

 _Go ask Schuldig. He'll show you how to do it._

 _Schuldig's way is the right way. What were you thinking, Ran?_

 _If I had a son like Schuldig I wouldn't have to worry so much about the future of this company!_

"This is my second year at Takatori Enterprises."

Ran blinked at the news. Takatori was Fujimiya's parent company. No one had told him that Schuldig was working there. That must mean—

"I'm in the global securities division. Your father really hooked me up with that." Schuldig grinned, and if the expression on his face was a little malicious, Ran was too confused to call him on it. "He told me to do a good job so he can bring me back to Fujimiya in an executive position. He said he needed someone to help run the company since his son was such a fuck-up."

Ran scowled, feeling his stomach lurch. It was just like his father to say something like that.

"I put in a good word for you, though. He was always too hard on you." Schuldig sighed. "I guess it can be quite stressful being the heir-apparent."

Silence greeted that statement of false sympathy. Ran had no doubt any concern on Schuldig's part was phony. There was no love lost between the two of them. Ran still remembered the bitter rivalry with the older intern, the way Schuldig had mocked his inexperience, calling him "kitten" and "daddy's boy" in front of the other workers, and the time the German had taken the credit for that report his father needed for the Fujisu acquisition, making him look like an incompetent child in the process. The embarrassment was still fresh in his mind.

"So, still working for daddy? I don't remember seeing your name on the directory last time I was in the building."

"No."

"No? So what're you into these days? Working someplace else? Out from under the thumb of the old man?" He smiled. "Or wait, are you still in school?"

Ran glowered at him. "No. I work at a flower shop."

"A flower shop?" Schuldig looked at him curiously. "Did your father disinherit you, or something?"

"No."

"Slumming it?"

Ran ignored him. He didn't see how it was any of the German's business _what_ he was doing with his life.

"Well, you're still young. I'm sure you'll pull yourself together eventually." He brought his beer bottle to his lips. "Hey, if you ever need a job, just give me a call," he said, around swallows.

 _When hell freezes over,_ Ran snarled viciously in his head.

"So what brings you to this place? I'm surprised to run into you here. Are you even old enough to drink?" Schuldig smirked. "Wouldn't have guessed this was your scene."

Ran glared daggers at the insolent, green-eyed jerk. "I'm waiting for someone."

"Ah, a date. What's her name?"

"It's not a _date,"_ Ran snarled. "He's just a friend." Schuldig chuckled knowingly. Ran wanted to throw his beer in the man's face.

"What's _his_ name, then?"

"Yohji. His name is Yohji."

"He must be someone special for you to be sitting in this place by yourself, waiting."

A vicious retort was on the tip of his tongue, but before he could voice it, he caught sight of Yohji weaving across the room in their direction. Ran let out a sigh of relief. _Finally._

"Hey. Sorry I'm late."

Ran got up quickly, nervous, for some reason. He looked down at Schuldig who raised an eyebrow at him with a small smile then took to examining Yohji from head to toe in the most inappropriate manner. "Listen, we have to go," Ran said abruptly. He grabbed Yohji's arm, intending to lead him away.

But Yohji was watching Schuldig, obviously curious as to why no introductions were forthcoming.

"So you're Yohji," said Schuldig with a lopsided grin. "I've heard all about you from Ran—though he completely left out your physical description. And I can see why." He continued to smile charmingly. "Won't you sit down?"

"We have to go," Ran insisted, not liking the predatory gleam in Schuldig's eyes as he examined Yohji one bit.

"What's the rush?" Yohji drawled. "Let me at least have a drink."

Yohji took a seat in Ran's recently vacated chair. Ran stared down at him in consternation.

"Why don't you go grab us all another round, Ran?" said Schuldig, waving a hand. "My treat."

Glaring at Yohji, who just grinned at him and puckered his lips in a covert kissing motion, Ran stormed off in the direction of the bar. Though it galled him, the sooner he got the beers, the sooner he and Yohji could drink them and leave. Waving for the bartender, he tersely ordered three bottles and headed back to the table.

When he reached the table, the other two were talking. Yohji was smoking a cigarette, and Schuldig had his arm around the back of his chair, leaning in and whispering slyly in his ear. Ran dumped the bottles on the table and looked around unsuccessfully for a third seat. Noticing his predicament, Yohji got up quickly and motioned for him to sit down.

"Here," he said. "I'll rustle up another chair."

Ran watched Schuldig watch Yohji saunter across the crowded room with an animosity that could be cut with a knife. Of course, Schuldig acted oblivious. It was so like him to insert himself into something when he had no right. When Yohji returned with a chair, the grinning German made it a point to move over so that Yohji's chair would fit snuggly between his right side and the wall. All Ran could do was grit his teeth in frustration.

Clearly, Yohji thought the situation was funny because he smoked and flirted and made small talk with Schuldig while he sipped his beer, ignoring the fact that Ran was very quiet and that his beer remained untouched.

Finally, Yohji deigned to notice Ran glaring at him, and he stubbed out his cigarette.

"I think we better be going," he said. "We have a pressing engagement with a hot tub in a hotel room overlooking the beach." Yohji turned away from Schuldig, smiling at him, instead, and Ran felt his heart flutter. Yohji reached out and brushed the fingertips of his right hand lightly across his cheek before standing up. "Let me run to the bathroom," he said, "then we can go. Be right back."

Schuldig watched Yohji walk away.

"You're a lucky guy, Ran," Schuldig said slowly, turning and studying him speculatively. "But then you always were."

Ran looked at him in surprise.

"You're actually happy, aren't you?"

Ran realized that his German eyesore was right—because Yohji made him happy, happier than he had any right to be. Yohji was good looking, intelligent. They had everything in common. The sex was mind-blowing. What more could he ask for?

"And I'm just a second year exec, working my ass off, without a gorgeous blonde who wants to spend a lazy Friday night with me in a hot tub in a hotel room overlooking the beach." He shook his head sadly. "Damn lucky."

"Hey, I don't suppose I could have a cigarette?"

Ran looked at him askance. They were Yohji's cigarettes, but he didn't think Yohji would miss just one. Whatever he gave Schuldig, it was worth it to get rid of the man. He nodded towards the pack. Schuldig smiled and picked it up, tapping out a stick.

"Thanks," said Schuldig. He picked up the matches, lit his cigarette then put the pack and the matches in his jacket pocket.

They sat in silence, not knowing what to say to each other, until Yohji returned.

"Another drink?" Schuldig suggested.

Yohji shook his head. "No, we have to get going," he said. "It was nice meeting you."

"Goodbye," said Ran.

"Goodbye," said Schuldig, smiling. "It was nice seeing you again. I'll give your father a call next week and mention I ran into you." Schuldig stood up, buttoned a couple of buttons on his gray double-breasted jacket, and walked away with Yohji.

Watching them leave, Ran thought it was quite a coincidence meeting up with his old nemesis in this out-of-the-way place. He really envied Schuldig. He wished he had someone to spend the night with, lazing around in a hot tub in a hotel room overlooking the beach. Schuldig had always been so damn lucky. How had an asshole like him managed to pull such a great guy like Yohji?

Ran finished his beer and looked around the bar, wondering what the hell had possessed him to come to this place tonight. He hated bars; the cigarette smoke alone was enough to make a person ill. He considered his options. There was something else in the back of his mind, bothering him, but it slipped away. _I'll remember it later,_ he supposed, _if it's important._

He got up and walked towards the glass doors. Upon gaining the outside, he breathed deeply, inhaling the brisk sea air. Sighing softly, he crossed the parking lot, heading in the direction of his Porsche. He figured he might as well head home. Though he always liked the beach, there was no real reason for him to stay.

 _Owari_

**Author's Note:**

> Author's Notes:
> 
>  _Alles Nahe werde fern_ is a line from Goethe that means: everything near becomes far. Goethe was referring to the evening twilight, when the things closest to us seem to move away from our eyes.
> 
> This story is a re-working of a very clever short story called "A Friend Indeed" by David Garnett that first appeared in the magazine _Interzone._ I tried to adapt it to Weiss Kreuz but I suspect I failed to capture the unique and resonant flavor of the original work.


End file.
